According to the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the teen birth rate in the United States rose in 26 of the 50 states in the country in 2006.  This increase according to the CDC was the first the nation had witnessed in 15 years and the biggest increases were seen in the South and Southwest.

The teen birth rate shot up from 40.5 births per 1000 women in the age group of 15 to 19 in 2005 to 41.9 in 2006 based on 99 % of all birth certificates in the country for 2006. According to the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mississippi had the highest teen birth rate, with 68.4 births reported per 1,000 girls aged 15-19 while New Mexico finished second with a birth rate of 64.1 and Texas came third with a birth rate of 63.1 in rate of increase.

The lowest teen birth rates were reported in the Northeast for 2006, with New Hampshire with the lowest rates of 18.7, followed by Vermont at 20.8, and Massachusetts with 21.3. Only North Dakota, Rhode Island and New York, were states that reported a decrease in teen birth rates between 2005 and 2006 the report said.

The report published in "Births: Final Data for 2006" is the first state-by-state study on teen birth rates for 2006 which includes state-based and national information on teen, unmarried, and multiple births. The report also included health data on cesarean deliveries, smoking during pregnancy, low birth weight, and preterm births.

The report also said that the rate of babies born at low birth weight rose to the highest level in 40 years, reaching 8.3 % in 2006. The preterm birth rate also rose in 2006, to 12.8 % of all births.

The proportion of all births to unmarried women also increased to 38.5 % of all U.S. births in 2006, from 36.9 % in 2005.

The authors said the numbers provide "important information on fertility patterns among American women, including age, live-birth order, race, Hispanic origin, marital status, and educational attainment. Up-to-date information on these fertility patterns is critical to understanding population growth and change in this country and in individual states,"